Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Wordless Wednesday

My silly face

Going #1 or #2 in 0 Gravity

Strap feet in. Position thigh restraints. Turn on vacuum and check for suction. You are now ready to “go” in space.

All of us have looked up at the stars in awe and wondered about life in space. We wonder what the earth looks like and how zero gravity feels but there might be one mystery that you’ve overlooked. What do the astronauts do when they have to… well “go”?

The final frontier couldn’t possibly be explored by humans if this problem was not solved. The solution wasn’t cheap. The International Space Station’s toilet cost around 18 million dollars! It’s not easy to use either. Astronauts have to go back to potty training. The “Positioning Trainer” prepares the astronauts for perhaps their most essential task.

Alignment is everything. The astronauts only have a 4 inch hole to work with compared to the average household toilets 12 to 18 inches. The “Positioning Trainer” provides the astronauts with a camera to make sure there aim is spot on. The astronauts need a lot of practice because there is no camera for them in the space. They must be careful going number 1 too fast because they definitely don’t want to flood the fan separator. No one wants to break the toilet in space. The call home to base might be a little awkward. “Houston we have a problem…”

The DIY Dreamer
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